Words: Dr Manfred MUELLER
Homeopathy is a wonderfully powerful system of medicine. Its successes never fail to amaze and challenge me. This case was a bit of challenge. It’s one such case that shows you just how important certain little symptoms and clues are for the observer to be able to report to the homeopath. In fact, it wasn’t until I was presented with just such a symptom that I was able to find the remedy to cure the patient’s gallstone colic.
Chuck [48], a busy psychotherapist, had sudden excruciating pains in his right upper abdomen. There had been a family history of gallbladder disease. 3-4 homeopathic remedies were tried with no effect. One of them even aggravated the pain every time he took it during the attack. He had appalling pain — this caused him to writhe on the floor, sometimes for hours. He had lost eighteen pounds in two months.
Ultrasound showed multiple small gallstones in his gallbladder and signs of inflammation. The gastroenterologist recommended laparoscopic surgery. However, Chuck did not like the idea of having his gallbladder removed.
“Can I wait till they all pass?” he had asked the doctor.
The doctor had responded dryly, “Sure, if you wish to be in pain for the next ten years.”
Chuck was used to pain. But, he had never experienced this level of it. Yet, he was of the belief that removing an organ should be a last resort. He insisted, in spite of his pain, on continuing to trying homeopathic treatment.
A ‘big gallbladder flush’ and ‘daily small flushes’ — significant quantities of grapefruit juice and olive oil — had no effect. By then, he had lost another twenty pounds and his friends began to fear the worst.
During one weekend he had an attack, while at the beach, that caused vomiting; it lasted for nearly ten hours. He was on the verge of being hospitalised. Sometime later, he revealed he had considerable frustration at his work, much suppressed anger, but the homeopathic Staphysagria did not help improve his condition. 2-3 other remedies were tried to no avail.
On another occasion, Natrum muriaticum, followed within one half-hour with Hepar sulphuris calcareum, caused a synergistic effect. Deep-seated emotions regarding his work as a therapist came to the forefront, causing him to sob for a half-an-hour. Afterwards, he was calm and relaxed and felt he had a new lease on life. However, this undoubtedly valuable healing experience failed to prevent the next gallstone colic. By now, he had at least one attack a day, usually in the morning, but sometimes even a second episode in the evening.
One day, during a follow-up consultation, I asked him to once again describe the nature of his pain. There was a peculiar feature of his discomfort before the colic started; this, he had somehow never mentioned. He described a sensation in his liver region ‘as if’ a small object, the size of a pea, slipped from right to left. Carduus marianus has this symptom. He took Carduus marianus, once daily, in a Q-potency [LM potency], and every ten minutes during the attack. He found that the dose taken during the attack would improve the pain instantly and completely stop the colic after 2-3 doses.
Within two weeks of taking Carduus marianus daily, Chuck noticed his attacks reduced in frequency. On a trip to Europe he had an attack while on the plane which responded quickly to a few doses of Carduus. He had another mild attack while in Europe that lasted only minutes after taking a dose of Carduus. He felt a sensation ‘as if’ he would develop gallstone colic on the return trip, but after a dose of Carduus, it never developed into a full-scale attack. He had one last brief colic; this was again relieved by Carduus, on the day of his return. With this last attack his gallstone colic stopped completely. This was July 1, 2000. Six months later there had not been a single attack. Since he was curious if the stones were really gone, he decided to have another sonogram. The ultrasound was conducted on January 29, 2001.
The physician performing the sonogram said, “There are no gallstones. But, I can see clearly that there is considerable scar tissue, indicating you could have had gallstones over a long time, but passed them.” She seemed sceptical at first when he told her about the colic. When she heard he managed entirely without painkillers, she commented admiringly, “You must be a tough SOB.”
That was years ago. Chuck continued to take Lycopodium clavatum in Q-potency for another two years. He has not had another gallstone colic ever since. He has kept his gallbladder intact.
